The Portland daily press., 1887-06-13
NAMES RAILROAD BOOM.
A Press Representative Talks With
an Old Railroad Man.
A Plan of the Canadian Pacific
Railroad.
A Bright Outlook for Portland as a
Terminal Point.
Especial to the Press.

BANGOR, June 10. Bangor is just now in
fever heat over the new railroads that are
planned The proposed Penobscot Central,
from Bangor through Corinth to Milo, and
the road from Bangor to Castine are of
course the subject of the agitation. The con-
clusion is generally accepted that If the PEI
nobscot Central should be built it would pass
by lease under the control of the Bangor &
Piscataquis road. The main question at is
sue just now is whether such combination
would benefit the Piscataquis road. The
road now has no entrance to Bangor except
over the Maine Central from Oldtown. BY
the Penobscot Central it would gain such
terminus in the city, leaving the part of the
line from Milo to Oldtown to be operated vir-
tuaily as branch of the main line. The
towns along the proposed route are anxious
for railroad; but whether such line
would be profitable is just now a burning
question. An old railroad man told the rep
resentative of the PRESS, to-day that the re-
lations Of the Piscataquis road with the
Maine Central have always been of the
friendliest character. The arrangements for
the haul between Oldtown and Bangor have
been liberal towards the Piscataquis, and
the road is doing very we'll under the ar
rangement. 1t was, he said, quite an under
taking to bnild a new line and secure for it
terminal facilities in a city like Bangor.
A scheme which has heretofore seemed of
far more wildcat nature than the Penob-
scot Central is the proposed railroad from
Castine to Bangor But the representative
otthe PRESS found today man who thinks
oran nxrnr fhof+ +l.z i
built. Heis an old railroad man, too, and is
now occupying responsible position on a
railroad that gives him an insight into the
motives behind the moves that are made.
In the first place" he says, "the distanhe
from Bangor to Castine is. only about thirty
nVe miles. 10 build railroad that distance
would be nothing at all to the men who are
Denind the Castine project. Who are these
men? you ask. Why, they are western flour
manufacturers. the gIeat millers of Mime
apolls are among them. They are men who
are much more venturesome in Investing
money than eastern men. They would build
this road TO Castine not perhaps with a view
OF making 1t great through route, but to
add another string to their bow. They al
ready ready have their line, from Minneapolis to
Ste Marie they will reach Canada soil and
the Canadian Pacific. Thus they will get a
nearly straight line east. And the greater
facilities they have for reaching the sea-
Doalu 'no pStter tiley VIII De able to dictate
terms to the railroads that want their
irelghts. A cent on barrel of fionr, one
half cent on bushel of corn is all the diff
ference those men want to make fair thing
or nothing at all. So think they are quite
as likely to come down from the Megantic to
would come over the Piscataquis or Penob-
scot Central to Bangor that would make
some business for those roads. although
through Is not such paying sort of traffic
ss you mlgnt suppose. 1t is like self-right-
you are off,
will tell you," he continued" of a road
that think will be surely built. 1t is that
Boston and Quebec Air line road from Show
hogan to the Megantic line near Moose River
regard that as the most promising of all
the schemes to tap the Megantic. 1t will
made a dlrgct line for the Canadian Pacific
to reach Portland harbor. And say what
yo,n y,,I VII, Portland is the place that
freight that is shipped east of Boston. The
Canadian Pacific can haul freight from the
west to Portland, load 1t on steamers there
and and get II to England cheaper than the same
even St John. Take it in winter, when they
are all showed under up north there. They
are not going to drag heavy trains through
the snow when they can slip them straight
down to o Portland ts by way of Skowhegan.
AS 70 that proposed line to Belfast by
way of Monson, Harmony and Pittsfield. 1
think that scheme will never be carried out.
They were sick of it long age, and the failure
OF the Maratime bank gave the Canadian
capitalists good excuse for hauling out.
Why, there is nothing in the region through
which that road was to run that would give
It local traffic, and as / have said before
through traffic pays little. A good Maine
Central engine would haul in one train all
the people out of the region tributary TO that
road, and another engine would haul
all their live stock after tban,
No sir, you win never see the connection
made between Moosehead Lake and Belfast
The great connections of the Canadian Pa
cihc with the Maine seaboard will be made
with Portland or possibly Castine. Portland
Win It's ogdensburg and the prospect of the
Skowhegan route is in the enyiable posi-
ti0n." ~
These are the views of leading railroad
man OF Bangor, who preserves a cool judg-
ment amidst the railroad excitement.